Paper cone rolling apparatus



Sept. 24, 1968 L. F. HALL PAPER CONE ROLLING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 7,1967 INVENTOR Les rer F. Hall ATTORNEYS United States Patent cc3,402,646 PAPER CONE ROLLING APPARATU Lester F. Hall, 5907 Sherry Lane,Dallas, Tex. 75225 Filed Feb. 7, 1967, Ser. No. 614,460 4 Claims. (Cl.93-79) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This application discloses apparatusfor rolling paper cones including a cone-shaped, continuously rotated,spindle which is shaped at its tip to facilitate gripping of a corner ofa sheet of paper which is to be rolled into a cone. The shaping of thetip of the spindle is such that the rolled cones may be easily removed.The apparatus is essentially manually operated.

In my copending application Ser. No. 606,856, filed I an. 3, 1967, nowPatent No. 3,345,977 entitled Projector Apparatus for Paper Cones, thereis disclosed a gun-like device for distributing advertising material inresidential areas, the material being in the form of rolled paper cones.The objective of the apparatus disclosed in said copending applicationis to provide an inexpensive yet accurate technique for distributingpaper circulars or leaflets. The technique must be inexpensive since thematerial must be delivered in quantities of many, many thousands toachieve a useful return, and must be accurate in that the paper will bedelivered near the front doorstep of each house in the residental areas,increasing the likelihood that the material will be picked up and read.The apparatus disclosed in said copending application provides auniquely effective technique for distributing this material, butrequired that the cones of paper be prepared such that all of the conesbe almost exactly the same size and shape, and also necessitates theproduction of very large quantities of such cones by an inexpensivemethod.

Cone rolling machines previously manufactured have been generallyunsuitable for the purpose just described because either an especiallyshaped paper is needed or the spindle upon which the cone is formedrequires a clamp or slit for holding the paper to start shaping thecone. In the latter situation, production of cones is necessarily slowbecause the spindle must be stopped to operate the clamp or insert theedge of the paper in the slit. This step of stopping the spindledetracts from the speed of operation quite markedly.

It is the principal object of the invention to provide a technique andapparatus for manufacturing paper cones in an inexpensive yet accuratemanner, this manufacturing technique requiring operators with a minimumof skill and training. Particularly, it is an object to provide a papercone rolling technique using a rotating spindle wherein it is notnecessary to stop the spindle to initiate rolling the cone.

In accordance with this invention, there is provided apparatus formanufacturing paper cones in what is essentially a manual operation. Aspindle is rotated at a suitable speed which may be perhaps a fewhundred r.p.m., with the end of the spindle being cone-shaped to definea form around which the cone is rolled. The top of the spindle is shapedso that an operator may place the corner of a sheet of paper around thetip and apply manual pressure to start the paper winding around thespindle. The shaping of the tip is preferably smooth in a longitudinaldirection so that the paper cone may be easily removed from the spindlewhen completed. The rotating spindle may be mounted in a manner suchthat a supply of the sheets of paper is readily available, and a tapedispenser 3,402,646 Patented Sept. 24, 1968 is readily at hand forproviding short lengths of tape to apply to the cones to hold them inplace.

The novel features believed characteristic of this invention are setforth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well asother objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood byreference to the following detailed description of a particularembodiment, read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of apparatus for rolling paper cones accordingto the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a front elecation view of the apparatus of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged end view of the spindle in the apparatus ofFIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a side view of the end of the spindle as in FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 5 is a pictorial view of one of the cones rolled on the apparatusas illustrated in FIGURES 1-4.

With reference now to FIGURES 1 and 2, apparatus is shown for rapid,accurate and repeatable production of paper cones with a very simplepiece of equipment requiring a relatively unskilled operator. Basically,the apparatus comprises a spindle 10 which is rotated in the directionindicated by an electric motor 11 which is coupled through a reductiongear 12 and a pulley arrangement 13 to turn the spindle. The shaft ofthe spindle 10 is supported by a pair of bearings 14. The speed of themotor 11 and the various ratios in the reduction gear 12 and pulley 13are such that the spindle 10 is rotated continuously at a fairly slowspeed, perhaps about 300 rpm. It will be noted that the spindle drivearrangement including the motor and gear is mounted on a suitable tableor support 15 in a manner such that the spindle 10 projects out over acut-out space whereby the operator will have freedom of movement.

The spindle 10 is shaped to define a cone-shaped portion 16 which is ofthe same size and shape as the desired finished product. The length ofthe cone-shaped portion 16 is at least as long or longer than the papercone which is to be rolled thereon. Thus, there will be a firm base forrolling the cone from one end to the other so that the paper cones willbe the same size each time. The end of the cone-shaped portion of thespindle 10 is a shaped tip 17 which is an important feature of theinvention, aiding in gripping the paper and starting the formation ofthe cone as will be explained in detail below.

In operating the apparatus of FIGURES 1 and 2, a person would be seatedfacing the spindle 10 and would have convenient access to a stack ofpaper sheets 18, this being the material to be rolled into cones.Ordinarily this material would consist of sheets of paper or very lightpaperboard, of the type used for advertising circulars. Usually one endof the sheet is a return post card, with the sheet being scored orperforated to permit tearing off the return card. The remainder of thesheet would contain the usual advertising matter. The operator manuallypicks up from the stack 18 one of the sheets 20 with the left hand andplaces the upper left-hand edge of the sheet over the tip 17. This edgeor corner of the paper is folded or lapped around the tip 17 then gentlypinched or squeezed by the operator between thumb and forefinger of theright hand. This is sufiicient to grip the edge of the paper and beginto turn the paper and lap it around the spindle 16 to form a cone. Ofcourse the tip of the paper cone turns or slips between the thumb andforefinger of the operator. When the sheet 20 has been completelywrapped around the spindle 16 to form a cone 21, as generally seen inFIGURE 5, the operator releases the pinching grip on the tip of the coneand pulls the cone away from the spindle, it being noted that the shapeof the tip 17 permits the cone to be easily withdrawn from the spindlebut yet holds the edge of the paper for turning. The operator thenplaces a short length of masking tape 22 or the like around the cone 21,as seen in FIGURE 5. The length of tape is obtained from a convenientlyplaced tape dispenser 23 which may be of conventional form asillustrated or may be a device which dispenses a precut length of tape,preferably the latter for fast operation.

In order to avoid having a sharp point on the cones an indicia isprovided near the top of the spindle 10 to provide a guide for theoperator in starting the paper. A sharp pointed cone is undesirable inthat when projected at high speed against a screen door it may stick inthe screen. Accordingly, the cones are rolled with a blunt tip, i.e.with a hole in the end of the cone, to avoid this problem. To this end,a mark may be placed on the spindle, or preferably the tip of thespindle is cut off at 24 as seen in FIGURE 4, giving the operator areference as to where to start the paper.

With the apparatus and method just described, the average operator aftera few minutes instruction and a few hours practice can obtain a rate ofat least 1,000 per hour or more. Ordinarily the completed cones would bestacked one on top of the another on a large number of upright dowelslocated on a board immediately to the right of the right-hand corner ofthe support 15.

With reference to FIGURES 3 and 4, it will be noted that the tip 17 ofthe cone-shaped portion 16 of the spindle is shaped to define four fiatsides which are effective when the spindle is turning to grip the cornerof the paper when the operator squeezes the corner around the tip 17. Itis understood of course that a knurled or serrated tip would performthis function. However, to permit ease of removal of the completed conefrom the rotating spindle, it is preferable that the shaping of the tip17 be a flat sided arrangement rather than being knurled or the like.

While the paper cone rolling apparatus has been descrbed above withreference to a specific embodiment, it is of course understood that thisdescription is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Variousmodifications of the disclosed embodiment, as well as other embodimentsof the invention, will be apparent to a person skilled in the art uponreference to this application.

It is therefore contemplated that the appended claims will cover anysuch modifications or embodiments as fall within the true scope of theinvention.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for use in manufacturing paper cones by primarily a manualoperation comprising: a spindle having a cone-shaped end thereon, thelength of the coneshaped portion being at least about as long as thepaper cone to be rolled, drive means for continuously rotating thespindle at a speed of several revolutions per second, means positionednear the spindle for holding a supply of paper sheets each of which isto be rolled into a cone whereby an operator may readily place thesheets one at a time in a rapid manner over the tip of the spindle forrolling into cones, the tip of the spindle being shaped to define aplurality of surfaces departing from a cone shape whereby a corner ofeach of said sheets when lapped around said tip and manually squeezedwill grip the spindle and rapidly roll the sheet round the spindle toform a cone, the shaping of the tip being generally smooth in alongitudinal direction to facilitate removal of the paper cone from thespindle, and means positioned adjacent the spindle for dispensing to theoperator a length of tape to be applied to each paper cone to hold itsshape.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the spindle is shaped todefine a plurality of flat sides.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the tip of the spindle istruncated at short distance from what would be the tip thereof toprovide a guide for the operator in placing the corner of a sheetthereon whereby a blunt tipped cone may be rolled.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein an indicia is providedadjacent the tip of the spindle to provide a guide for the operator inplacing the corner of a sheet thereon whereby a 'blunt tipped cone maybe rolled.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS BERNARD STICKNEY, PrimaryExaminer.

